Bessemer Group Inc. Decreases Stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Bessemer Group Inc. cut its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 4.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,784,711 shares of the company's stock after selling 73,584 shares during the quarter. Bessemer Group Inc.'s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $111,117,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Peachtree Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Peachtree Investment Partners LLC now owns 11,189 shares of the company's stock worth $697,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC grew its stake in Coca-Cola by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC now owns 4,993 shares of the company's stock valued at $311,000 after buying an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Excalibur Management Corp raised its holdings in Coca-Cola by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Excalibur Management Corp now owns 29,412 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,831,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the period. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC now owns 3,616 shares of the company's stock worth $225,000 after buying an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atlas Brown Inc. grew its stake in Coca-Cola by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. now owns 21,024 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,309,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company's stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

KO stock traded up $0.48 on Monday, hitting $71.91. The company had a trading volume of 4,651,741 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,303,207. The stock has a market cap of $309.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.11, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $69.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.32. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12-month low of $57.93 and a 12-month high of $73.95.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.84%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Coca-Cola's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 82.59%.

Insider Activity

In other Coca-Cola news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total transaction of $3,882,079.68. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 246,909 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,520,662.64. This trade represents a 18.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total value of $961,317.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 94,676 shares in the company, valued at $6,769,334. This trade represents a 12.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 313,423 shares of company stock valued at $22,263,071 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KO has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, March 27th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. TD Cowen upgraded Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Coca-Cola currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $74.24.

Coca-Cola Profile

The Coca-Cola Company, a beverage company, manufactures, markets, and sells various nonalcoholic beverages worldwide. The company provides sparkling soft drinks, sparkling flavors; water, sports, coffee, and tea; juice, value-added dairy, and plant-based beverages; and other beverages. It also offers beverage concentrates and syrups, as well as fountain syrups to fountain retailers, such as restaurants and convenience stores.